Differences between separate and base search spaces

The table in this section illustrates the key differences between search spaces created for either search method. Keep these differences in mind when selecting the type of search space that you want to create for your site.

Criteria	Separate search space	Base search space
Search space set-up	Requires knowledge of relational databases and XML. Configuration utility will take longer to complete creation.	Requires knowledge of relational databases and XML.
Metaphor creation	Requires knowledge of XML. The two search methods are identical in this regard.
Performance	Slight comparative performance advantage, which may become more pronounced depending on the number of records that are being searched.	Slightly poorer comparative performance. Again, the difference will be more pronounced for larger sites.
Synchronization requirements	Commands are provided for the most common methods of updating your product inventory which automatically resynchronize the search space.	Resynchronization is not required.
Including additional columns	Requires manual creation of search space and disabling automatic resynchronization.	Not available.
Price	All entries in the category must have a price defined before they can be found during a search.	A price is not required to allow searches on other attributes.